Differential Course of Executive Control Changes During Normal Aging
- 21 June 2007
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Taylor & Francis Ltd in Aging, Neuropsychology, and Cognition
- Vol. 14 (4), 370-393
- https://doi.org/10.1080/13825580600678442
Abstract
Normal aging has been associated with executive control deficits, but it is as yet unclear whether different executive subprocesses are differentially affected during the course of aging. The present study aimed to investigate age effects on a range of executive control subcomponents. Four consecutive age groups (20–30 years, 31–45 years, 46–60 years, 61–75 years), matched on present state IQ and mood, were compared on tasks of strategic memory processing, verbal fluency, reasoning, inhibition, task management, and self-rating of executive abilities. Deficits concerning the suppression of habitual and experimentally induced prepotent response tendencies and the ability to efficiently divide attention were observed in subjects over 60 years of age compared to the younger groups, while memory, verbal fluency, and reasoning were largely unaffected. Results suggest a sharp decline of executive function after age 60 and a differential course of different executive subcomponents across aging, adding further support to a multi-dimensional model of executive function.Keywords
This publication has 89 references indexed in Scilit:
- Effects of Age, Education and Gender on Verbal FluencyJournal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology, 2003
- Variable effects of aging on frontal lobe contributions to memoryNeuroReport, 2002
- Dissecting the Effect of Aging on the Neural Substrates of Memory: Deterioration, Preservation or Functional Reorganization?Progress in Neurobiology, 2002
- Thalamic volume predicts performance on tests of cognitive speed and decreases in healthy aging: A magnetic resonance imaging-based volumetric analysisCognitive Brain Research, 2001
- Social relationships, social support, and patterns of cognitive aging in healthy, high-functioning older adults: MacArthur Studies of Successful Aging.Health Psychology, 2001
- Source Memory and Encoding Strategy in Normal AgingJournal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology, 2000
- Age effects on executive ability.Neuropsychology, 2000
- Color-Word Stroop test performance across the adult life spanJournal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology, 1997
- Relation between Fluid Intelligence and Frontal Lobe Functioning in Older AdultsInternational Journal of Aging & Human Development, 1997
- Evaluation of age-related changes in serotonin 5-HT2 and dopamine D2 receptor availability in healthy human subjectsLife Sciences, 1995